Can a provisional ball be played for a ball that may be lost within a penalty area?

A provisional ball is a second ball that a player may play when they believe their original ball may be lost outside of a penalty area or out of bounds. If a ball is thought to be lost within a penalty area, the player is not allowed to play a provisional ball. The rules specify that the correct procedure when a ball is potentially lost in a penalty area is to proceed directly to the original ball or to take the appropriate relief options available under the rules pertaining to penalty areas.

Since the provisional ball is primarily intended for situations where a ball may be lost outside of a penalty area or out of bounds, this reinforces the correct understanding regarding the usage of provisional balls in the context of lost balls and their associated boundaries. Therefore, if a ball is lost within a penalty area, you would follow the specific guidelines for that scenario rather than using a provisional ball.